"We already use Otter (or Fireflies), so we have AI covered."
I hear this objection every day. And I get it. Tools like Otter.ai and Fireflies.ai are fantastic feats of engineering. They transcribe meetings with high accuracy—typically 85-95% for Otter and 80-90% for Fireflies, depending on audio quality and accents—and send automated summaries.
For a Product Manager or a Recruiter, they are perfect.
But for a Sales Professional, relying solely on a notetaker is dangerous.
Why? Because a transcript is a passive artifact. It tells you what happened after the damage is done. Nomi is an active participant. It helps you change the outcome while the game is played.
Here is the breakdown of why sales teams are upgrading from generic scribes to dedicated Sales Copilots.
The Core Difference
- Otter/Fireflies (The Scribe): "Here is a record of how you lost the deal."
- Nomi (The Strategist): "Ask this question right now so you win the deal."
Table of Contents
- The Commodity Trap: Transcription is not Coaching
- Feature Showdown: Generalist vs. Specialist
- The "Just-in-Time" Advantage
- Cost Analysis: Admin Time vs. Revenue
- Verdict: When to use what?
The Commodity Trap: Transcription is not Coaching
In 2023, transcription was a feature worth paying for. In 2025, transcription is a commodity. Zoom does it for free. Teams does it for free.
If your "AI Strategy" is just recording calls, you are solving an Admin Problem, not a Revenue Problem.
- Admin Problem: "I hate typing notes." → Solved by Otter.
- Revenue Problem: "My reps are freezing when prospects ask about pricing." → Solved by Nomi.
Otter gives you a perfect transcript of your rep failing to handle an objection. It saves them time, but it doesn't make you money. Recent updates in Otter's enterprise suite add AI chat for post-meeting queries, but it remains retrospective. Fireflies excels in post-call analytics like sentiment tracking, yet lacks proactive intervention.
Feature Showdown: Generalist vs. Specialist
Otter and Fireflies are Horizontal Tools (built for everyone). Nomi is a Vertical Tool (built strictly for B2B Sales).
| Feature | Otter / Fireflies | Nomi |
|---|---|---|
| Core Function | Transcription & Summary | Live Guidance & Coaching |
| Target Audience | Everyone (HR, Eng, Sales) | Sales Teams Only |
| Live Objection Handling | ❌ No (post-call analysis only) | ✅ Yes (Real-Time) |
| Methodology Support | ❌ No | ✅ Yes (MEDDIC, SPIN) |
| CRM Sync | Basic (Salesforce, HubSpot) | Advanced (Custom Fields) |
| Meeting Summary | ✅ Yes (AI-generated highlights) | ✅ Yes |
The Kicker: Nomi also does the transcription and the summary. So by choosing Nomi, you don't lose the notetaking; you gain the coaching. Otter's OtterPilot for Sales adds some automation, but it's limited to summaries and action items, not live coaching. Fireflies' 200+ AI apps include workflow automation, yet they focus on post-meeting tasks like CRM logging rather than in-call strategy.
The "Just-in-Time" Advantage
We discussed this in our Sales Enablement Guide: the most effective help is the one delivered instantly.
Scenario: A prospect asks, "How do you compare to Competitor X?"
- With Otter: the rep struggles, gives a generic answer, and hopes to clarify in a follow-up email. Later, they read the transcript and realize they missed the key differentiator. Otter's real-time transcription helps during the call, but guidance comes after.
- With Nomi: The AI detects "Competitor X", accesses your Battle Card, and displays the winning argument on the screen instantly. The rep nails the answer.
The difference isn't better notes; it's a closed deal. Sales enablement tools like Nomi align with 2025 trends, where real-time AI boosts win rates by 12% on average. Fireflies' "Talk to Fireflies" enables voice-activated queries during calls, but it's more for information retrieval than sales-specific tactics.
Cost Analysis: Admin Time vs. Revenue
Let's look at the ROI.
- Notetaker ROI: Saves 10 minutes per call.
- Value: ~$500/month in saved productivity.
- Copilot ROI: Saves the deal.
- Value: $50,000 in closed revenue.
If Nomi helps you close just one extra deal per year that you would have otherwise lost, it pays for itself 50x over. A notetaker can never generate revenue; it can only save time. Forrester's 2025 analysis of AI sales tools shows 197% ROI over three years for copilots, driven by productivity gains and higher close rates. Otter claims over $1B in customer ROI from transcription efficiencies, but sales-specific tools like Nomi amplify this through direct revenue impact.
For a comparison with another sales-specific tool, check out Nomi vs Gong.
Verdict: When to use what?
Use Otter or Fireflies if:
- You are in HR, Engineering, or Marketing.
- Your main goal is simply to have a searchable record of meetings.
- You have zero budget for sales-specific tech.
Otter shines for real-time collaboration in English-heavy environments, while Fireflies offers superior multilingual support (100+ languages) and integrations.
Use Nomi if:
- You carry a quota.
- You want to replicate your top performers.
- You need to automate CRM data entry AND improve win rates simultaneously.
Don't bring a notepad to a gunfight. Bring a Copilot.